Workplace

Young and precarious workers across Britain and Ireland are getting organised. Small but successful campaigns – such as the McDonald’s strike, #Betterthanzero in Scotland and Unite the Union’s Fair Hospitality initiative – have begun to rebuild a fighting trade union consciousness among young people which had been lost by decades of inaction by the majority of union leaderships.

The ongoing threat of outsourcing of work at Bombardier and the current redundancies, linked to outsourcing, are a huge challenge to the workforce. However, having led the battle to save jobs and skills, Bombardier workers have shown what they are capable of when united and mobilised and are now in a stronger position to deal with future threats, whether political or from the company.

Only two days into 14 days of planned strike action by academic staff in Queen’s University, the University of Ulster and 59 universities across Britain and the front page headline of the Times ran “University chiefs split as strikes cause chaos!” Some university bosses went so far as to publicly criticise the plans to scrap defined benefit pensions and declared support for the strike.

2018 has opened with a crisis across our entire health service. Working people are both worried and angry – worried about the service they will receive if they become ill and angry about the unending programme of austerity which has chipped away at our public services. Previously, the Northern […]

The victory at Ryanair has the potential to inspire other workers in the struggle against exploitative employers. The fact that such a notoriously anti-union company can be brought to heel by the threat of collective action is a good indication of the power of workplace organisation. Ryanair’s approach to workers’ rights is hardly unique among employers, and the lesson of this struggle is sure to resonate with other workers who face opposition to their basic rights by similarly exploitative companies.

The US International Trade Commission will decide on 1st February whether to uphold 300% tariffs on Bombardier’s innovative C-Series jet as a result of complaints made by Boeing. If upheld, this effectively blocks sales and leasing of the C-Series within the US, which represents 50% of the market, and puts in jeopardy the entire programme. Without the C-Series programme, the future of Bombardier in Northern Ireland is very much at risk.